Today in Texas History: Transistor radio debuted

On this date in 1954, Texas Instruments debuted the first transistor radio, the Regency TR-1 radio. The executive vice president of TI, Pat Haggerty, wanted to develop a transistor radio even though many thought that transistors were too expensive for consumer sales. The company introduced the radio in New York and Los Angeles and did so in October to take advantage of holiday sales. Consumers eventually purchased over 100,000 transistor radios. Early models of the Regency TR-1 are now on display in the Smithsonian Museum.